By: Tim Kays
At the February 8 meeting of the Bryan Board of Education, District Superintendent Mark Rairigh announced that in partnership with the Williams County Health Department, a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for county school personnel would be held in the high school gymnasium on February 12.
“All Williams County school employees, those who service our students in Williams County, will have the opportunity to receive the COVID-19 vaccination,” Rairigh reported.
“We are lucky that we are able to have facilities to host events such as that, so we are going to be the host site to help vaccinate…all of the school personnel in Williams County. In summary, what we have is our employees in Williams County that work in school systems will receive two doses of the COVID vaccine.”
“The first of those is going to be administered Friday, February 12, and all of the vaccination processes, the vaccination clinic as we refer to it, will take place in our gymnasium.”
“So, first doses will begin to be administered around 8:30 in the morning. They project to finish up shortly before 1:00 in the afternoon. We’re looking to get as many educators through…actually they’re predicting about 160 educators through, per hour at this point.”
Those attending the clinic will be receiving the Moderna vaccination. “That is a state level decision; that’s not a local decision,” Rairigh said.
“The Health Department was actually expecting the Pfizer at one point, then they changed over to the Moderna a little bit later in our planning for this event. We’re excited that the employees that choose to have the vaccination, have it available to them. It brings everyone one step closer to help put an end to this pandemic that’s happening, if they so choose.”
“We’re very much happy with the partnership that we’ve established with the Williams County Health Department. It’s taken a lot of coordination with the other six school districts outside of Bryan to help pull this off.”
The clinic dates fall on staff in-service dates which give the kids the day off. “It works out to our benefits that we do not have students on that date,” Rairigh said.
“There are no schedule changes to students in Bryan City Schools, and that is also the same for the second vaccination date. The second vaccination has to occur 28 days later, or four weeks, so that date occurs on Friday, March 12.”
“Again, we’ll be the host site. For Bryan City Schools, that happens to be staff in-service date as well. So there are no changes to the calendar for Bryan City Schools, and our employees or the employees of Williams County who choose to receive the vaccination.” Current estimates put the number of vaccines to be administered at 600.
Back in January, the Bryan City Schools were recognized with the Purple Star Award for military-friendly schools. According to the Ohio Department of Education, the Purple Star Award recognizes schools that show a major commitment to students and families connected to America’s military.
Schools that earn the award will receive a special Purple Star recognition for public display. On this evening, the Board heard plans on furthering the program in the schools, and why the program is necessary.
“There are 1.3 million active service duty members in the United States,” said Director of Elementary Education Karyn Cox. “Roughly 40% are parents that have two or more minor children. With frequent relocations, on average a US military family will move between six and nine times between kindergarten, and their high school graduation.”
“As they transition, students adapt to varying cultures, curriculum standards and course offerings. In 2017, Ohio launched the Purple Star Program. Now, there are 11 states that are active, or developing Purple Star initiatives. We did have three, we now have four students that have active duty parents serving in the military.”
“So the Purple Star Award for military-friendly schools recognizes that schools should show a major commitment in helping those families.”
The Purple Star Advisory Board, formed by the Ohio departments of Education, Higher Education, Veterans Services and the Adjutant General, helps decide a school’s eligibility for the award.
A school will be honored with the Purple Star Award if it completes a regimen of required activities, plus one optional activity.
The requirements met by Bryan include having a staff point of contact for military students and families who serves as the primary liaison between them and the school, a position now held by Ms. Cox.
The liaison completes professional development on special considerations for military students and families under federal law. The liaison also identifies and informs teachers of the military-connected students in their classrooms, and the special considerations military families and students should receive.
The optional activity completed was the holding of military and family community engagement nights, which is for the fall and spring sports.
Retired United States Navy Master Chief Jon Ely, a member of the Bryan High School Class of 1977, was in attendance along with his wife, Lori, to speak further about the program. Recently retired from the Williams County Juvenile Probation Department, Ely currently serves as a paraprofessional in the Bryan City School System.
“I served 27 years in the Navy,” Ely said, “…and we have two daughters that had to sustain this military life, so like Mrs. Cox said, we have a full understanding of the impact that children have when parents deploy.”
“When I would deploy, I think I did seven cruises of six to seven months I was gone at a time. I also missed the birth of both of my children; my wife was able to handle that while I was gone, as well.”
“The impact that military families have upon them is huge,” Ely continued. “It affects them socially, mentally, in all dynamics of their life. Where we were stationed in Jacksonville, there were a lot of military families there.”
“We moved to Virginia Beach…there were five major Navy bases in Virginia Beach, including Norfolk Navy Base, which is the largest ship base there is. In a lot of those school districts, you would have military children probably outnumbering the civilian children in classrooms.”
After Jon’s retirement from the Navy, the Jon and Lori, along with daughters Megan and Malorie returned to Bryan. Jon began a ten year run with the Juvenile Probation Department, and Malorie enrolled in the seventh grade of Bryan Middle School.
She graduated in 2010, and like her father, enlisted in the Navy where she excelled, graduating boot camp #1 out of 801 sailors.
“She was brilliant,” Ely said. “She learned how to speak Arabic, couldn’t tell me what she did for a living, and she was honorably discharged last January after six years of honorable service. Unfortunately, in June she passed away due to PTSD.”
“Mr. Rairigh approached me with the possibility of an Honors Board in the Event Center, around the trophy area. My wife and I would like to fully fund a board in Malorie’s honor, to recognize all the folks that have graduated from Bryan High School, and the branch of service they served.”
“What a way to remember Malorie and all those who have served our country and graduated from the halls of this school district.”
Tim can be reached at tim@thevillagereporter.com
